Creator — Building a Ghost Theme (Work Log)

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Building Creator, a free open-source multipurpose Ghost theme — documented step by step, in the open.

Build log 25 Jul 2026 1 min read

Part 25 — Setting up membership and the Portal

Turned on Ghost's native membership — the feature that makes it more than a blog.

What I did

  • Enabled members in Settings → Membership.
  • Added Portal triggers: data-portal="signup" / signin.
  • Gated content with {{#unless @member}}…{{/unless}}.

Access levels

{{#if access}}
  {{content}}
{{else}}
  <a data-portal="signup">Subscribe to read</a>
{{/if}}
Membership + Portal are built in — no plugin, no third-party. This is a big part of why Ghost gets chosen for paid publications.

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